Synchronized Strategies: The Impact of Unifying Linear and Digital Media Operations

But fast forward to today and many of these same content sellers are moving to combine their onceseparated linear and digital teams and create unified media operations teams that can efficiently manage and maximize both traditional linear and digital revenue streams For example we know that theamp160merger between Showtime and Paramount involved combining linear and digital operations teams AMC Networks also announced recently that it would merge its linear and digital sales teamsWhy Content Sellers are Unifying Linear and Digital OperationsFirst content sellers have realized that while OTT and linear distribution deals and data can look quite different the underlying processes used to manage them are often quite similar While OTT distribution does present several unique challenges to traditional linear teams content sellers are now seeing that similar license management compliance and financial workflows can be used to manage both revenue streamsSecond when linear and digital media teams are siloed each group has a vested interest in maximizing its own revenue streams This invariably leads to conflict between linear and digital media teams over how and where media assets should be distributedA third reason for unifying linear and digital media operations has to do with the financial pressures content sellers are feeling Profit margins are being compressed across the media industry so even enterpriselevel media companies can no longer afford to have entirely separate teams for linear and digital media operationsBenefits of Unifying Linear and Digital Media Operations1 Streamlined media operations workflowsHybrid distribution is not going away Unifying linear and digital media teams empowers content sellers to streamline licensing negotiation agreement management data analytics financial management and other media operations workflows Combining digital and linear media operations into a single department helps reduce duplicate efforts while eliminating data silos and driving operational efficiency2 Insync goals and prioritiesItamp8217s easy to see how linear and digital media teams can come into conflict Both teams may want to control distribution for as many assets as possible so they can earn more revenue and demonstrate their value within the organization This can lead to zerosum thinking where distribution successes on one side are seen as a loss for the otherBut by unifying linear and digital media operations companies can eliminate conflicting goals and priorities by creating a single team thatamp8217s aligned with the selleramp8217s core objective maximizing longterm overall revenue across all distribution channels3 Diverse media expertiseAnother benefit of unifying linear and digital media operations for content sellers is the opportunity to leverage diverse media expertise across all content distribution operationsIntegrating teams gives the most skilled data analysts compliance experts and media finance professionals from both linear and digital teams the opportunity to multiply their impact on the business by touching all media distribution channels amp8211 not just linear or digital Team members who previously worked in separate teams will have the opportunity to collaborate exchange expertise and innovate new ways to maximize distribution revenue4 Reduced operational costsUnifying linear and digital media teams is proving to help content sellers reduce costs in response to tightening profit margins across the industry Combining linear and digital teams can help drive down staffing costs management costs and office overhead while allowing for resource consolidation or economies of scale on things like software technology and data storageThe Road Ahead Challenges and OpportunitiesAligning longterm media distribution strategiesUnifying media operations gives content sellers the opportunity to better align longterm media distribution strategies but thereamp8217s still plenty of room for debate around how those strategies could look in practiceAdvocates for OTT will want to focus on digital distribution and leverage the rise of FAST platforms to access bigger audiences for valued content assets On the other hand advocates for linear may be searching for ways to preserve MVPD relationships and revenue with exclusive distribution agreements for those same assets As the industry continues to evolve content sellers will need to think carefully about which channels can help maximize both shortterm and longterm revenueConsolidating linear and digital media technologiesAs linear and digital operations teams join forces they will need to streamline operations by consolidating the technologiesamp160used to manage license agreements store and analyze data and maintain financial recordsPreviously siloed data from linear and OTT distribution partners should be integrated into a single data store where it can be analyzed together Licensing management tools and financial systems of record for linear and digital distribution should also be combined to streamline workflows and reduce costs To achieve these goals organizations will need to overcome the lack of common metrics across distribution channels and implement a holistic analytics strategy to transform linear and digital data into actionable insightsIt may take a concerted effort to unify linear and digital operations teams but itamp8217s a trend that is likely to increase as content sellers understand the increasing benefits of this evolutionThis article was written by Karen Bleiler EVP ampamp GM of Revenue Solutions at SymphonyAI Media Bleiler oversees the companyamp8217s Onboarding Customer Success and Managed Services divisions bringing over 15 years of experience in finance accounting and licensing operations from numerous roles including her tenure at MPEG LA LLCPosted at MediaVillage through the Thought Leadership selfpublishing platformClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageorgMyersBizNet

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